PanCare Childhood and Adolescent Cancer Survivor Care and Follow-up Studies (PanCareSurFup) is a collaborative research project funded by the Seventh Framework Programme of the European Commission and will study the long-term effects in former cancer patients. Detailed knowledge of the consequences of the treatment will inform the current treatment protocols in order to minimize long-term side-effects while maximizing treatment efficacy. Guidelines for appropriate follow-up of the current and future survivors to reduce their potential late effects will also be developed within the project.

PanCareSurFup has a budget of 6 million euros and is coordinated by Lars Hjorth from Skåne University Hospital and Lund University in Sweden. The project has been organized by the PanCare group, uniting clinicians, epidemiologists, statisticians, patients and parents. The first meeting of the project was held in Lund on 2-4 February 2011. The International Agency for Research on Cancer (IARC) is one of the 16 contractual partners.

In cooperation with the members of the European Network of Cancer Registries (ENCR), IARC will explore the information routinely collected in population-based cancer registries across Europe with respect to the follow-up of former cancer patients. Where possible, IARC will facilitate establishing links between the registries and the other study partners, who will study in detail such specific aspects as second primary neoplasms, cardiac toxicity and late mortality. In addition, IARC will also lead an overview of the size of the population of cancer survivors in Europe and occurrence of second cancers and late deaths. In cooperation with other partners, a standard proposal will be prepared for collecting useful information at the population level.

Being a former cancer patient in childhood or adolescence is a rare condition. Therefore, pan-European cooperation and population-based study of late effects is important for balanced description of the health burden of cancer and ensuing preventive measures. 

PanCareSurFup will collect data for five years and is also supported by IARC and the other participating institutions.

Link to the EU project PanCareSurFup

Contact
Dr Eva Steliarova-Foucher (steliarova@iarc.fr) 
Project leader at IARC, Cancer Information Section (CIN)